Why Your Business Should Accept Checks
You can’t go anywhere these days without hearing about another business moving to mobile POS. Whether you’re ordering your drink on-the-go from Starbucks, or ordering furniture for pickup, streamlining POS is the name of the game. So why are so many businesses accepting checks? Wth credit and debit cards more dominant than ever as a payment form, it’s hard to believe that checks are as widely used as they are. Yet, according to All Business citing statistics from the Federal Reserve, from 2003 to 2006, the total value of checks processed actually rose from $41.1 trillion to $41.6 trillion. Knowing that, it’s no surprise that both large and small businesses should absolutely consider accepting checks. Offering customers a variety of payment options – beyond just cash, means avoiding the often higher cost option of credit and debit cards.
Lower Processing Fees
Personal checks have almost no interchange fees. Many customers use checks because they can pay for items without carrying cash. For small businesses with thin margins, credit and debit fees can make electronic payment systems untenable.
More Security
With today’s technology, checks are extremely secure. More so, with services like Electronic Check Acceptance through TeleCheck, paper checks can instantly be turned into electronic ones. These options take the responsibility for any returned checks and their fees. Additionally, electronic checks give merchants the opportunity to receive funds much faster than paper ones, while keeping processing times approximately equal. Merchants who use electronic checks and scan checks also greatly reduce waste. Those businesses who choose these methods may never even need to go to the bank because they can simply deposit the checks electronically. Similarly, for online businesses “E-checks” reduce the abandoning of products in virtual shopping carts. According to a First Data paper, having at least three checkout options increases completed transactions by 9 percent. In some cases, those who are afraid of giving out their credit or debit cards on the internet due to a fear of identity theft find e-checks to be a satisfying option.
Some People Prefer Checks
Even though most people find debit and credit cards to be extremely simple, there is a subset of the population, particularly senior citizens, who are simply more accustomed to using paper checks. About 71 percent of those who do not pay bills online liked to use paper checks before plastic cards because checks give them better records and control over their spending.
A recent Twitter survey performed by NPR, they asked if it was “Time to Write off Checks” completely. Surprisingly, a whopping 58% of the people said, “Yes!” However, with benefits like the ones mentioned here, accepting checks is a boon to business, and perhaps here to say. Does your business still use checks? Follow us on Twitter and Facebook and let us know your thoughts!
